2019 Acura RDX gets $38,295 base price, tops out just below $50,000

The 2019 Acura RDX will carry a base price of $38,295 when it goes on sale officially on Friday.

With the new RDX, Acura promises a more direct rival for crossover SUVs such as the BMW X3, and Audi Q5, while it recognizes its big rivals for buyers come in the form of the Infiniti QX50 and Lexus NX.

The new RDX has been developed from a new architecture, and sports a new drivetrain with some of Acura and parent Honda’s latest technology. All RDX SUVs come with a 2.0-liter turbo-4 with 272 horsepower, coupled to a 10-speed automatic. A new all-wheel-drive system with torque-vectoring across the rear axle is an option for the front-drive compact crossover.

Base models get standard power features, automatic climate control, synthetic leather upholstery, a 10.2-inch display screen for the new touchpad-driven infotainment system, LED headlights, and a panoramic roof. All-wheel drive is $2,000 on any model. Technology-package RDXs start from $41,495 and add navigation, parking sensors, and leather upholstery as well as 12-speaker ELS audio.

The new infotainment system promises a big advance for the RDX and for Acura. Instead of a touchscreen, users operate audio, navigation, phone, and other functions from a console-mounted pair of touchpads. Swipe and tap controls perform most functions, from music access to navigation input, but a new natural-voice recognition system on most models lets users skip the console- and steering-wheel controls almost entirely for speech commands.